New Chamber President at AGM
NEW CHAMBER PRESIDENT, NEW BUSINESS PARTNERSHIP UNVEILED FOR 2015
Outgoing Chamber President Stephanie Jones, Dalhousie University President
Dr. Richard Florizone (centre) and incoming Chamber President Andrew Lake
following their announcement of a new business partnership aimed at matching
Dalhousie students and graduates with individual business operators. (Johnson Photo)
March 11, 2015
The Truro & Colchester Chamber of Commerce has unveiled a new President and a new business partnership.
Chamber Members have elected local businessman Andrew Lake of Will Kare Paving to take over the helm of the local chamber, which is one of the province’s largest business organizations. Lake has volunteered on the Chamber board for the past eight years and has been a vital part of the Chamber’s executive committee for the past 2 years.
Lake told the crowd of business leaders that he has great respect for business entrepreneurs who strike out on their own, and promised to stand behind them and provide guidance at every turn.
He’ll be backed up by Alex Stevenson of CIBC in Truro, who will serve as Mr. Lake’s Vice-President for the next year. Outgoing President Stephanie Jones will remain on the Chamber Executive in the position of past-president for another year.
Under Lake’s leadership, the Chamber has agreed to partner with Dalhousie University to kick-start business interaction with Dalhousie graduates.
Dalhousie President Dr. Richard Florizone was the keynote speaker at the Chamber’s 125th annual meeting on Wednesday, where he announced that chamber and university staff will be uniting to guide students toward closer ties with individual business owners in the Truro and Colchester business community.
Busy 2015 Shaping Up
PREMIER AND FEDERAL MINISTER TO SPEAK TO CHAMBER
The Truro & Colchester Chamber of Commerce will be welcoming the Premier to Truro on January 16th, and a high-profile federal cabinet minister in early-February.
Premier Stephen McNeil will be the chamber’s first guest speaker of 2015, and President Stephanie Jones says seats are going fast. It is co-presented by RBC and RBC Dominion Securities. She says the federal employment minister is on the guest list for February.
“Truro has a history of being a political town, and when you have high-profile leaders visiting, members of the business community want to be on hand to hear what they have to say and to offer some advice,” says Jones.
The Chamber’s Breakfast with the Premier takes place at the Holiday Inn on Prince Street. The date is Friday, January 16th at 8:15 am. And with 2015 expected to be a federal election year, the first of the big names in federal politics is also taking aim at Truro.
Employment Minister Jason Kenny will be speaking to the Truro & Colchester Chamber at a lunch-hour presentation on February 6th, which is also a Friday.
That event also takes place at the Holiday Inn, where Kenney is expected to respond to ongoing changes in immigration rules surrounding the Temporary Foreign Workers’ Program.
Seats for the breakfast and the luncheon are available at the Chamber of Commerce office in Truro at 895-6328. You can also e-mail the Chamber’s events coordinator. That address is [email protected]
NSCC Launches Innovation Competition
SOCIAL ENTERPRISE INNOVATION COMPETITION LAUNCHES IN NOVA SCOTIA
TRURO - The Nova Scotia Co-operative Council has launched a Social Enterprise Innovation Competition. Three prizes will be awarded, one in each Region (South west Valley, Northern/ Central, and Cape Breton). The prize is a $2500.00 equity contribution plus 10 hours of technical assistance (governance training, business plan review, etc).
The Social Enterprise Innovation Competition is open to all social enterprises in Nova Scotia who meet the eligibility criteria. They can be start-ups (registered/incorporated and ready to launch), or established social enterprises looking to grow or become more innovative. Municipalities, First Nations, and other agencies considering a social enterprise to address a local challenge or opportunity are also eligible.
Social enterprises are defined as enterprises that use market-oriented production for the sale of goods and/or services to further a public benefit mission. In other words, the enterprises must be operating a business activity – selling a product or service.
The social enterprise can take the form of a not-for-profit, non-profit, a co-operative or social purpose business which are for-profit but designed to fulfil a social mission.
Social enterprises have a strong emphasis on meeting a community need or maximizing an opportunity that will benefit the broader community. Examples may be, (though not limited to), a local daycare, transportation system for seniors or persons with disabilities, recycling depot, homecare and healthcare services, etc.
“The Nova Scotia Co-operative Council is keenly interested in stimulating and supporting the creation of community owned enterprises that can address local issues and maximize a local opportunity. There is a growing market of business enterprises that combine economic, social and environmental goals, which clearly create a win, win, win situation. The social enterprise competition will allow us to not only support local innovation but also create a pipeline of opportunities that can be supported in the future,” said Dianne Kelderman, President & CEO of the Nova Scotia Co-operative Council.
The deadline for the first round of applications is January 23, 2014.
Those wishing to apply can do so by visiting www.novascotia.coop.
Michelin Development Program
BEGINNING THIS SUMMER - 2014
Learn More About the Michelin Development Business Start Up Program - We're Taking Applications Now from Entrepreneurs in Truro and Colchester County! Access up to $100,000 in start-up capital. Click Here to View the Full Details.
Noteworthy Recipients
Chamber Awards Annual Scholarships
Students Pose for Photos at NCHS in Tatamagouche on June 27th. The Chamber was represented at all
three local high schools that evening to present $1,000 scholarships to three deserving graduates.
The Truro & Colchester Chamber of Commerce is proud to announce the recipients of a combined $3,000 in Chamber Educational Scholarships at the three local high schools.
$1,000 is awarded to Jillian Robinson, who is graduating from South Colchester Academy in Brookfield.
$1,000 is also awarded to Patrick Rafters of North Colchester High School in Tatamagouche.
The final $1,000 goes to Amy Gilchrist-Ackles of CEC in Truro. Congratulations to all three of you and we know you will continue to make us proud!
New Developments Taking Shape in Colchester
The new Petro Can sign arrives at Masstown (above left) while developer Blair Wallace of Brentwood Developments shows off his new building at the Onslow exit along Highway 1-0-2. (above right)
New Developments Taking Shape at Masstown and
Onslow Exits to Bolster Local Growth
Entrepreneurs like Laurie Jennings, Ron Smith and Blair Wallace have a lot in common. They want to see Colchester County's growth take off. And they're doing something about it! Ron Smith is Business Development Manager for the acreage linking Masstown Market with its Corn Maze at Exit 12. The new gas bar and convenience store is about to open on that site, with close to 25 construction workers employed to develop the Petro Canada Centre and related expansions next door, which include a business meeting space and professional offices. Mr. Smith and his employer Laurie Jennings would like to see it grow even more in the months ahead, so watch this space for details.
Mr. Wallace says he has plans for up to 8 new businesses along the Onslow Exit and is also working on developing some new housing on the western side of the highway. The County of Colchester is also installing new water mains in the area to help plan for the growth to come. It's very good news for the region, and for local construction workers.
Local Online Shopping Site Goes "Live"
Chamber, DTP Launch www.ShopCentralNS.ca with Partners
TRURO – Shopping online from stores in Truro-Colchester is getting a lot easier.
The Chamber of Commerce and the Downtown Truro Partnership have combined with the provincial government and the Sobey School of Business to launch a new web site allowing local retailers to take advantage of the growth in online shopping.
The new website is www.ShopCentralNS.ca
A test-launch of the site is now underway and will continue until later this year, when more new businesses will be added.
“This is phase one, but it’s a very important phase for us,” says Truro & Colchester Chamber of Commerce President Stephanie Jones. “The Chamber and the Downtown Truro Partnership really want to thank the retailers who’ve stepped forward for the test period. We also acknowledge the help and funding for the project provided by our community and provincial partners.”
Those partners include the Nova Scotia government, Northern Opportunities for Business and Saint Mary’s University along with the Sobey School of Business.
“This proves that working together makes us stronger,” says Downtown Truro Partnership Vice President and retail owner Karen Baillie of Elegant Steps on Inglis Place. “Selling online links all of us into the global marketplace. People can now shop on this site from across Atlantic Canada and around the world.” (www.shopcentralns.ca)
I-T Advisor Mike Ross, who works with the Community Access Program will help us monitor the site and any issues that might occur over the test period, which ends in December.
Phase One’s design and technical work is supplied by Greg Beaver, a Truro native who has formed a company with his Halifax partners known as GB Techsulting, with help from the Sobey School of Business. The Chamber and DTP intend to make the site available to every business in Truro-Colchester once the test period ends.
Dalton Industries' Provincial Export Award
Congratulations to Chamber Member Dalton Industries of Bible Hill
Sincere congratulations to the team at Dalton Industries for being honoured as one of several finalists at the 2014 Nova Scotia Export Achievement Awards. This year is the 30th year for the awards, which are chosen from a list of exporters submitted by Chambers of Commerce across the province. Dalton Industries currently exports parts for recreational vehicles to the USA and Europe and uses a website that's available in half a dozen languages. Congratulations to Dale Toole (holding his award statue in the photo above) and his team of hard-working and dedicated professionals for making us proud!
Mayors' Breakfast Touches on Amalgamation and More
Mayor Bill Mills makes a point as a sell-out crowd of business operators take turns asking questions at the Mayors' Breakfast on April 16th, sponsored by CIBC-Wood Gundy and Bell Aliant. Questions focused on everything from the dollars and cents of amalgamating the three jurisdictions to how local residents welcome immigrants. The event was organized by the Chamber. In the photo are Mayors Mills, Wendy Robinson of Stewiacke and Bob Taylor of Colchester. (L-R) Full Story is below.
TRURO - The Mayors of Colchester, Truro and Stewiacke gave their opinions and explanations on everything from the demise of Nova Scotia’s RDAs (Regional Development Agencies) to amalgamating their three councils into one as they sat down in front of a Chamber of Commerce audience today.
Questions from the audience dealt with the RECC Centre, taxes, economic development, immigration and a host of other topics in front of a sold-out crowd at the Best Western Glengarry.
On the topic of boosting immigration from immigrants who create jobs for this part of the province, Stewiacke Mayor Wendy Robinson summed it up.
“We’re friendly to people in the bank – we say hi and ask folks how they’re doing,” she says. “But how often do we invite immigrant families over for Christmas Dinner?”
Colchester Mayor Bob Taylor surprised many in the audience when he said he’d be willing to look at some of the aspects of regional amalgamation. But he said services would be the place where savings could be made, and not necessarily by reducing the number of municipal councillors at the table.
Truro’s Bill Mills said if Truro were to amalgamate with Bible Hill, the tax base would increase by 50 per cent, but service costs would go up by 100 per cent. Mills did not quote any similar studies about what might happen if Truro were to merge with Colchester County. Stewiacke Mayor Wendy Robinson told Chamber members her council would likely be mandated to decrease from six town councillors down to just four later this year, adding she sees more local control over issues by staying away from amalgamation for now.
As for the salaries of those who run for election, Robinson said it’s generally less than 4 per cent of total spending in the Town of Stewiacke. In a separate question, all three indicated they might be willing to run for re-election.
Other topics covered by the three mayors included the state of roads, the proposed new Hilden overpass that would divert traffic into the Truro Business Park, and the hiring of separate economic development officers for each jurisdiction. Millbrook’s Economic Development officer Terry French spoke briefly on behalf of Millbrook Chief Bob Gloade, who was absent due to a family emergency.
Mr. French urged those in attendance to look at the video on Millbrook’s website showing the reserve’s economic progress. millbrookfirstnation.net
The Chamber would like to thank the mayors, its board of volunteers and sponsors CIBC, CIBC-Wood Gundy and Bell Aliant for helping to make the Mayors’ Breakfast happen.